WASHINGTON, March 3 A Pakistani businessman living in California has become a fugitive to avoid prosecution for illegal contributions to prominent Democrats.
Abdul Rehman Jinnah of Los Angeles is believed to have left the country, the Los Angeles Times reports. He has been indicted on charges of setting up straw contributors to political action committees for Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., and Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.
Jinnah allegedly recruited relatives, friends and employees to donate money to and Clinton, and then reimbursed them.
A federal official told the Times prosecutors had no evidence that the committees knew the contributions were illegal.
Officials for both committees told the Times they did not know about the investigation or the indictments until the newspaper contacted them, and said the committees would not keep the donations.
A legal resident of the United States, Jinnah had a number of businesses, including All America, a cell phone distributor, and a chain of yoghurt shops.
Jinnah hosted fundraisers for Boxer and Clinton. He was also involved in organizing the Pakistani American Leadership Center, which helped form a Congressional Pakistani Caucus.
Copyright 2007 by UPI
